Parallelepiped
by SkatingonSunshine
Summary: AU- Merida is finally a senior in high school. Spring begins and, with no plans to attend university next fall, she can taste the freedom on her lips. Only, there seems to be one problem. Her geometry teacher, Ms. Queen. She's as intent on getting Merida to pay attention in her class as her somewhat pretentious name implies. However, she may be Merida's biggest distraction.
1. The Courtyard

**Title: **Parallelepiped

**Summary:** AU- Merida is finally a senior in high school. As the spring begins to warm things up, and with no plans to attend university next fall, she can taste the freedom on her lips. Only, there seems to be one problem. Her geometry teacher, Ms. Queen. She's as intent on getting Merida to pay attention in her class as her somewhat pretentious name implies. However, she may be Merida's biggest distraction.

**Rating/Warnings: **This is rated T. However, it does deal with a homosexual romantic relationship between two consenting adult females. One happens to be a student and the other a teacher in the first half of this story. I just wanted to make that clear. If the title is scary, it's because its a geometry term.

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><p>Chapter One: The Courtyard<p>

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><p>It was days like these that Merida thought school wasn't so awful. She could sit in the open courtyard all by herself and just relax in the warm spring air. In only a few weeks, the summer would officially begin and she could be out of this moldy, stuffy prison forever. She leaned back on the bench and took another bite of her apple. She let the juice slide down the corner of her mouth lazily and closed her eyes as she chewed.<p>

The clear of a throat above her broke her concentration. She opened her eyes and nearly choked as she realized who it was standing in front of her. Merida hastily wiped her mouth on her sleeve and sat up straight, lifting her eyes up from the neatly pressed pencil skirt, over the professional light blue blouse, and straight to the quizzical face staring at her. Miss Elsa Queen was there with her hands on her hips and an eyebrow carefully raised in suspicion. Although she had been more commonly known as 'the new geometry teacher taking Deville's place' at the beginning of the year, by now she was generally well-liked by the school's population. Both students and fellow staff alike admired her ability to exhibit grace and kindness in the classroom but still be firm and controlling enough to keep the rowdy high school kids in line. At the young age of 22, she had incredible skill with even the toughest of cases. Well, except when it came to one particular rebel.

"Merida," the teacher said evenly. "I'm surprised to see you here." She lifted a wrist and glanced at her watch. "It's not your lunch period."

"You know my schedule?" Merida asked, trying to regain her relaxed composure. Damn, she thought. It had been such a peaceful moment.

"No," Elsa replied. "I usually see you headed up the stairs this time of day."

"Oh, so you like to watch me, do you? And now you've followed me."

Elsa tried to keep her composure at the strange accusation.

"No," she repeated. "I usually come here to eat my lunch. I find it a welcomed difference to the noisy classes I have." She smiled gently and held up her lunch box to illustrate her point. She took the open seat next to Merida on the bench and started unpacking the box on her lap. Merida scratched the side of her neck, looking away and trying to find a new place for her eyes to land other than the teacher.

"Uh, so, aren't you going to go report me now?"

Elsa shook her head, lifting her sandwich to her lips. She paused and said,

"I told you, I came out here to have my lunch. I'm not going to miss that for something silly."

It was Merida's turn to lift her eyebrows. Could she really be getting off the hook this once?

"I'll do it after I've finished," the teacher added, after she'd swallowed her first bite.

Of course it was too good to be true.

Merida slumped again and groaned.

"Do you always have to be so… such a…?"

"Be careful of your wording here."

"A stickler for the rules," Merida decided. "You get me for every little thing! I cannae copy homework. I cannae leave class a bit early. I cannae come in a bit late. You have to cut me some slack!"

The teacher turned her head towards her. Merida's mouth shut and she swallowed nothing. That nervous habit seemed to be becoming a regular thing when the Miss gave her those icy looks.

"Why should I cut you slack? My other students work very hard for what they have."

"Aw cummoan!" Merida said with a scoff, again having to pry her gaze away from the woman beside her. "They cheat and copy more than I do. I'm willing to bet on that."

Despite her better judgment, Elsa pressed a hand against her lips and laughed softly.

"Donnae laugh!" Merida chided. "I'm not asking you to pass me for nothing. But what's the harm in showing up a little late? I don't mean any offense to you by it. I just hate waking up so early."

"I can see where you're coming from. But you should see where I am in this situation. This is my job, Merida. If you get in trouble and I don't say anything, then I am the one who gets in trouble. And there is a lot more riding on me being able to keep my job than you missing a television show because you're stuck in detention."

"Anno, but that's nothing compared to the punishment of having to listen to my mother rant. You don't have to listen to _that_."

"Your mother came to parent's night. She's a very nice woman."

"Well to others, o' course she is! She has to uphold a reputation somehow. But I know better."

Elsa couldn't help but laugh again.

"Merida, for all the headaches you cause me, you're very amusing."

The redhead smiled, enjoying the compliment.

"So you don't mind if I stay until class is done?"

"Hm," Elsa said, as if remembering that she was in fact sitting beside a cutting student. "Where are you supposed to be?"

"English. We have a test that I may have forgotten to study for."

Elsa sighed, shaking her head as she continued to eat. Merida shrugged.

"You're right, I didn't forget. I just ignored it. But my grade in English is downright awful."

"If your penmanship is anything similar to what I have to read when you write proofs, then I feel awful for your language teachers."

"Och!" Merida said in a mock-offended tone. "Who needs penmanship?"

She turned towards the tree they sat adjacent to and slipped a small switchblade from her pocket.

"What are you doing?" Elsa asked after a moment. She had been enjoying the silence until she realized that Merida being quiet could not mean a good thing. When the girl sat up, she pocketed the pen knife and showed off her work. In the bark of the tree, she'd whittled a beautiful, stylized capital 'M'.

"See? I know what the letters look like. But who cares what they look like on homework? No one reads that stuff anyhow."

Elsa hoped she was joking.


	2. Pass or Fail

**Title: **Parallelepiped

**Summary:** AU- Merida is finally a senior in high school. As the spring begins to warm, and with no plans to attend university next fall, she can taste the freedom on her lips. Only, there seems to be one problem. Her geometry teacher, Ms. Queen. She's as intent on getting Merida to pay attention in her class as he somewhat pretentious name implies. However, she may be Merida's biggest distraction.

**Rating/Warnings: **This is rated T. However, it does deal with a homosexual romantic relationship between two consenting adult females. One happens to be a student and the other a teacher in the first half of this story. I just wanted to make that clear. If the title is scary, it's because its a geometry term.

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><p>Chapter Two: Pass or Fail<p>

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><p>The next week, Elsa was sitting in the same spot under the large oak tree in the empty courtyard. She glanced over and saw Merida's 'M' in its place. Why had she chosen this place, of all the places in radius, to cut class? Now she was thinking about her again. She felt as though she already thought about her enough. It was certainly more than a teacher should focus on one student. Now, even during her lunch breaks, her mind wandered to the fiery redhead with the admittedly charming personality.<p>

And, speak of the devil, that was exactly who strolled through the open area just as Elsa was opening her bag of pretzels.

"G'afternoon, snowflake."

Elsa nearly blushed at the pet name. Nearly.

"I guess you were in the mood for another detention today?"

Merida grinned and held up her pass.

"Not today, thank you. I've got permission." She waved it side to side.

"I really doubt that pass says 'courtyard' on it. Where does Mrs. Belle think you are?"

"It doesn't matter. A pass is a pass." She plopped herself gracelessly beside the older woman and stretched out her legs. She contemplated kicking off her boots, but it would take effort to get them laced up again in case she had to leave quickly for some reason. At least here she could let the fresh air surround the rest of her. Elsa scanned her curiously as she munched on her snack. Should she argue Merida's logic? It might be best.

"The point of the pass is to keep you from causing trouble. Not excuse you from it."

Merida groaned.

"Are you the pass police?"

"Well, not exactly-,"

"Then," Merida interrupted, "we're both here to have some peace. So why don't we just have it?"

Elsa quieted and continued to nibble away her pretzels one by one. Merida cracked an eye open.

"You aren't going to yell at me for saying that?"

"Have I ever really yelled at you?"

Merida's eyes opened fully and she leaned forward a bit.

"No. You're much more successful with those damn looks of yours."

"Don't curse like that. You're in school."

"That's ridiculous! I'm a senior now. Every teacher loves to tell me how I need to grow up. 'You're eighteen years old now, Merida. It's time to make decisions. It's time to be an adult'. But I am not allowed to actually do anything. Cannae even curse, let alone go where I want when I want. I'm just stuck in this prison until they let me out. Then they don't own me anymore."

"We're all trying to do what's best for you. I know how you feel. I was a senior in high school once."

"Yeah, last year, was it?"

Elsa tried very hard not to roll her eyes.

"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment."

"You shouldn't. Being treated like this is pure awful. I'm an adult. I can make my own choices. They just will not let me."

Elsa had to admire her passion. They had completely different views on how structure and rules should be handled, but Merida's bravery was something she felt she had often lacked herself. It was as scary as it was inspiring.

"What is it you want to do once your free, Merida?"

"Whatever I want!" She said, beaming. "Of course I'll still do sports. I would never give up archery or biking."

"I meant: what will you do for a job?"

"Oh, that's obvious. I'm taking over my father's business. I already work at the shop part time."

"Is that what you want to do? Work at a sporting goods store?"

Merida eyed her skeptically.

"Are you trying to make that sound like a bad thing? I'm not just going to be a cashier or something. I'm going to own my own business. He's a chain of stores across the coast. He and me mum manage them all. That's what I'll be doing one day."

"I wasn't trying to offend you," Elsa apologized. "I just wanted to know if that's what _you_ wanted to do. Sometimes we're- I mean, people are- forced into something because of their parent's views."

"Believe me. I'll be doing what I want. Taking over the company will be great. It's all the resistance from me mother that makes it such a hassle. She's always on me about how I have to do this and that while my brothers run around doing who knows what."

"Running a business is a lot of work."

"Naw. My father really doesn't do much. I've seen him work. When you're on top, all the people beneath you do the work for you."

"I don't think that's how it works."

"Really? You ever topped?"

Elsa opened her mouth to reply when Merida's face got incredibly red. That wasn't what she was supposed to say.

"I meant been on top!" Merida added instantly, trying to backpedal. "Have you ever been on top?"

A siren went off in her brain. She was only making things worse. She put her hands on her burning cheeks and tried to think of something to say to remedy the situation. The siren and the thought of Elsa being on top of _anything_ were making it hard to think clearly. Elsa hadn't had her mind in the proverbial gutter before, but now she had figured out the implications and why Merida was looking so flustered.

"That's not what I meant!" Merida shouted, finding no better thing to say. Elsa blushed too, choosing to stare into the distance.

"I didn't even think anything of it. Honestly," she said.

The two refused to look at one another. Merida stood up and cleared her throat, deciding now would be the best time to run off. She was glad she'd kept her boots on.

"Well, I really should be off, then. My pass doesn't say 'courtyard' on it."

"Right. I'll see you tomorrow." Elsa kept her eyes trained ahead of her. "Don't forget to do your homework. 56 and 57."

"Aye. It'll be done. Mostly."

Stiffly, awkwardly, Merida walked out of the enclosure and rushed up the stairs. She never thought she'd be that happy to be back in class.


	3. Geometry

**Title: **Parallelepiped

**Summary:** AU- Merida is finally a senior in high school. As the spring begins to warm things up, and with no plans to attend university next fall, she can taste the freedom on her lips. Only, there seems to be one problem. Her geometry teacher, Ms. Queen. She's as intent on getting Merida to pay attention in her class as her somewhat pretentious name implies. However, she may be Merida's biggest distraction.

**Rating/Warnings: **This is rated T. However, it does deal with a homosexual romantic relationship between two consenting adult females. One happens to be a student and the other a teacher in the first half of this story. I just wanted to make that clear. If the title is scary, it's because its a geometry term.

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><p>Chapter 3: Geometry<p>

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><p>Numbers were consistent. Numbers made up formulas, and formulas supported structure. Elsa believed everything needed structure. She took comfort in the fact that the triangle would always be the strongest shape. She could sleep at night knowing that Pythagorean's theorem would give her the hypotenuse. Her tensions were tamed when she told her class the honest fact that two parallel lines would never, ever meet. Ever.<p>

Perpendicular lines, however, were a different story. They intersected and formed a 90 degree angle. It just so happened that Merida's small student desk was situated perpendicularly from Elsa's own, and that was where Merida was sitting on a particularly dreary Thursday after school had let out.

"Do you think it will let up by the weekend?" Merida asked, referring to the rain. She was turned around backwards in her chair and staring out the window. "I have an archery competition on Saturday."

Elsa smiled gently and opened a manila folder.

"Let's hope it does, then" she replied. "With all the rain this week, you've been even more antsy than usual."

"They won't let me out. The courtyard's flooded, so it's locked up."

"If they didn't lock it you'd be tracking mud through the whole building."

"Mud never hurt anyone. And it's a lot of fun for riding."

Elsa shuffled through the papers in the folder and smiled at the mass of wild hair in front of her.

"Ah, yes. That biking you do."

Merida turned around in her seat so she was facing forward again and able to see Elsa's face.

"What's that implying?"

"Nothing. I don't know a lot about it. Is that what you were doing yesterday instead of your homework?"

Merida grimaced. She folded her arms onto her desk and let her chin rest comfortably on top. She blew a lock of hair away from her face.

"Naw."

Elsa's lips tightened. She glanced down at the paper on top of the stack she had laid on her desk. There was Merida's most recent quiz score staring back at her. It was poor, to say the least.

"Merida, you're so smart," she began. "Why don't you just do your homework?" Elsa was sure that would cure the girl's grade, or at least bring it into an acceptable range. At this rate, her grade was sliding downward on a steep slope, and that line didn't seem like it would suddenly reflect itself and start climbing upwards.

"I dunno how to do the homework," Merida confessed. And Elsa assumed that was because she spent her time doing everything but pay attention in class. She doodled when she should be taking notes. At best she came into class half asleep and at worst she would be completely passed out before the end of it. She didn't understand what the trouble was.

Merida, on the other hand, knew what the trouble was. It had all started at the beginning of the year. Not long into the first semester, Merida began to notice just how attractive the new teacher was. She was somewhat shy and reserved at first, which was cute. But her presence alone demanded respect and she didn't take excuses from anyone. Merida admired that.

Then came some things she wasn't proud of. Because she also admired Elsa's looks. Elsa was fond of wearing tight but professional clothing. She didn't make any effort to hide her curves, but Merida made every effort to hide her appreciation of them. Some people in her position might have turned into a blushing, stuttering mess whenever they were in the presence of the woman, but Merida was tough. She took abuse from her friends well; prodding, nudging, and even inappropriate comments from the guys were not enough to get her too flustered in front of Elsa. Just somewhat.

As time went on, and Merida was moved to the front of the class, she found herself drawn further in. Now she noticed little things. Elsa usually wore her hair in a braid that wrapped around her head, but on certain days she styled it in a braid that fell down over her shoulder. Merida wondered how she would look with her hair completely free and falling down her back. She loved the way Elsa smiled, and the way she giggled with her hand pressed in front of her mouth. She was practically obsessed.

When she returned to class from Christmas break, Merida was sure she had done the unthinkable. She'd fallen in love. After three years of being a free woman, never having to worry about boyfriends or girlfriends and being able to do whatever she wanted whenever she wanted, Merida had it bad for one of the most unlikely people.

"You're perfectly capable of doing the homework. I know it." Elsa said, breaking her train of thought. "You're just not paying attention in class. Do you feel confused?"

Merida's heart beat louder. She most certainly did feel confused.

"I mean," Elsa continued, "I imagine if you don't understand sine and cosine that it would be difficult to answer the questions."

"Aye," she confirmed. "That's the trouble. It all just looks like Greek to me when I read it."

"Well, these concepts do date back to the Greeks, so you're not too far off."

"You know what I meant."

"Merida, I think what you need is some tutoring outside of the classroom. I'd be happy to meet with you like this more often so that we can help you overcome whatever it is that's keeping you from succeeding. I want to see you do well, you know."

Merida lifted her eyebrows.

"You want to tutor me?"

"Yes. I think it would help you. Maybe if we met here every week you'd be able to raise your scores considerably."

Merida glanced around the room, observing several math-related posters and tips on how to complete problems. If she couldn't pay attention in a class full of other students, how would she fair in a private lesson with the woman she couldn't stop thinking about?

"They won't be long," Elsa assured her. "I wouldn't want you to miss your practices or anything."

"Couldn't let that happen for sure," Merida said, grinning at her. She felt her heart rising up in her throat as she prepared herself to ask the next question on her mind.

"Speaking of practices, I have been working pretty hard for this competition." The younger of the two rubbed the back of her neck and tried to look nonchalant. "If you aren't busy, you could come an' watch. It's being held right in town."

Elsa's eyes widened slightly.

"You want me to come see you?"

Merida let out a light laugh.

"I'd like you to see the _competition_. But if you want to check _me_ out, that's fine too."

Elsa quickly closed the folder on her desk and became busy with putting it away. Merida could have sworn that a slight pink color had just appeared on her cheeks.

"Yes. Yeah. I can come. Or, I'll see if I can." She took in a breath. "I think that's all for today. I'll let you go."

Merida smiled, stood, and tossed her backpack over her shoulder, feeling a bit more confident than she had when she'd entered. As she walked out of the building she saw the rain had let up and the sun was starting to shine. Maybe things were beginning to look up.


	4. Archery

**Author's Note: **To the Guest that left the question… I am, in all honesty, not sure. I had my first real crush my first year of high school, and that relationship was what allowed me to discover who I was. You'll see how some of my experiences make their way into this story. I don't know anyone who is 100% confident with who they are, but you have to do what is right for you. Stay safe, don't be afraid of trying new things, and take your time. You'll find out who you are when you're ready. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

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><p>Chapter 4: Archery<p>

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><p>They always called her cold. Some people event went as far as to use the word 'frigid'. Elsa was naturally cold towards others. It was just how she acted. And she was perfectly okay with that. Calculating didn't require warmth or outgoingness.<p>

It wasn't that she was determined to be friendless, either. She just didn't care to have many friends. Elsa reasoned that she needed an education more than she needed drunken college parties, and a job more than she needed a girl's night out. Though, even a girl's night out was seeming more appealing than attending an archery competition in the pathetic hope that she could see the very last person she should be seeing.

Elsa was uncomfortably tense on a bleacher in the middle of the huge gymnasium, glancing around for any sign of the red curls she'd grown so used to spotting. On the one hand, seeing Merida meant admitting defeat. She was only there to see her, after all, and that really wasn't the kind of thing a teacher should do, right? On the other, seeing Merida would be a welcomed comfort among all the strangers in the crowd, who were only making Elsa weary.

Then she spotted a different familiar face. She shouldn't have been so surprised, but the thought hadn't crossed her mind before. Seeing Merida's mother caught her off guard. Elinor smiled and approached her.

"Ms. Queen," the woman greeted her. In Elinor's presence, Elsa felt that she was undeserving of such a royal name. Elinor had stern, regal elegance that vastly outweighed her own. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Oh, 'Elsa' is fine." Elsa said, sitting up straighter. "It's kind of funny; your daughter actually brought it up to me. I would have missed out otherwise."

Elinor regarded her curiously.

"You're a fan of archery?"

"Oh yes. You know, there is a lot of calculating involved. And Merida and I could try to apply what she knows here in the classroom."

Elinor seemed pleased with that answer.

"I'm so thankful you've offered to tutor her." She took the empty spot beside the teacher, who feared that meant she'd have to keep up this conversation for a long time. The answer she had given was one she'd spent a lot of time forming the night before as justification for why she was there. No one could know that she just wanted to make Merida happy.

"It's no trouble. I want to see her do well."

"So do I. She keeps insisting that she doesn't need schooling and that she can figure things out as she goes, but I worry about her."

"She is very smart," Elsa said, trying not to sound as wretched as she felt.

"With her mouth, maybe," Elinor joked. Elsa could agree with that. Merida was always trying to get her to blush or stutter or laugh. She'd make quips left and right and give a cute little satisfied smirk. Elsa bit her tongue. They weren't cute. They were infuriating! No, not that either. She should just be ignoring them. Somehow that seemed impossible.

"Ah, there she is," her mother said, eyes on her daughter. At first Merida's face lit up with excitement upon seeing Elsa, but she wavered slightly noticing her mother sitting next to her. She gave a little wave. Once she turned away, however, she transformed. She became completely focused on her target. Elsa felt herself leaning forward, wanting to watch her closer. She'd never seen Merida so focused. It was a sharp contrast from her typical laid back attitude. Elsa admired her deeply for that attitude, despite her attempts at controlling it as the adult world had dictated she should. In all honesty, the last thing she wanted to do was force Merida to go back to her classes or scold her for slacking off. All of her life Elsa had been told to be the good girl. Do your homework, eat your vegetables, and sit up straight. Then complete your lessons, finish these problems, work harder, and harder, and harder. It was order after order from her father, and she succumbed to the stress, letting it consume her. So when she saw how free everything about Merida was, from her wild hair to her burning desires to break the mould, Elsa felt a longing to be a part of that freedom. Where others might immediately label Merida as lazy or foolish, Elsa saw her as brilliant. She was determined to live life the way she wanted, and not by the rules of others. But the very nature of their relationship, that of teacher and student, carried a terrible taboo with it and the inability to get too close. Getting too close surely spelled disaster. So she watched from a distance, quietly enthralled as Merida's strong grip pulled the taut bowstring back to her cheek. Elsa's breath caught in her throat as she waited for the young woman to release the arrow. When she did, it sailed home into the target, and Merida's coy smirk sent Elsa into a quiet panic. With Elinor just beside her she remained as stoic and unaffected as possible, despite the butterflies threatening to fly right out of her stomach.

"Is she always this good?" Elsa asked casually. Elinor nodded.

"Aye. Her father taught her when she was just a wee one. Not my preference, of course, but she does love it."

"What was your preference?" Elsa prodded.

"Dancing. But can you imagine her in a tutu?" Elinor laughed. Honestly, Elsa couldn't picture it. A basketball jersey, a football getup, a swimsuit- those were all things Merida could wear in her mind's eye. But Merida was not the kind to prance around lightly or daintily. Another thing she admittedly liked about her.

Merida ended up winning the tournament for her age range, which came as no surprise to her. In tournaments like these, standing still and shooting a target with hardly any pressure was easy. She claimed the other competitors thought too hard about it all, and that she could face those in the older categories with no trouble. She and Elsa stood off to the side of the gymnasium, a safe distance apart as she explained this.

"Thanks for coming to see me, by the way," Merida said with a particular shine in her eyes.

"It was fun," Elsa replied, returning the smile gently. "You make it look so simple."

Merida shrugged humbly.

"You make math look simple."

"But that's my job."

"Not everyone is good at their job."

Elsa couldn't argue with that. In fact, she knew she wasn't very good at her job beyond being able to relate mathematics to her students. After all, most decent teachers had the sense not to relate themselves to their students quite as much as she was with Merida. Elsa was about to say more when Elinor came up and gave her daughter a hug. The teacher stood there awkwardly as Merida squirmed.

"Mum, cummoan," she groaned, clearly embarrassed.

"Och, shush. It's not often I get to see you do these things. I'm proud of you!"

Merida rolled her eyes despite the small smile playing at her lips as she managed to break free. Elsa felt uneasy watching the scene. Not moments ago she had been daydreaming about Merida's strength and now she was being fussed with by her mother. Her _mother_. Elinor expected Elsa to be a trustworthy figure, not a young woman harboring a hopeless crush on her daughter. She wrung her hands nervously.

"Well, I have to get going." She lied. There was nowhere else for her to be, but that was the least of her issues. "It was nice seeing you again." She gave her best teacher grin to Elinor and turned on her heels, starting for the door.

Elsa wondered what she'd gotten herself into. Sure, she and Merida had only hinted to one another their interest in having a relationship- whatever that meant. There had been some casual, albeit outright, flirtation. There were stolen glances between them that no one else would understand. But wouldn't it be best for her to forget about it? To tell Merida that this couldn't happen? _They_ couldn't happen. As she sat in her car, Elsa let her forehead rest against her steering wheel and sighed. If only it were that easy to let her go.


	5. Architecture

Chapter 5: Architecture

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><p>Another week. Another Thursday. Merida and Elsa sat side by side at Elsa's desk, slowly going over the problems she'd gotten wrong on her homework. Elsa was pleased to see the younger one improving. At very least she was doing the assignments now. As Elsa explained the mistake made on solving an inequality, she felt Merida's hand come to rest on her shoulder. She ignored it at first, continuing her thought and writing a new numbers on Merida's page in purple ink.<p>

"It's an easy fix. See? I think you just misread the sign."

Merida hummed gently and trailed her hand downward, from Elsa's shoulder blade to the small of her back. Elsa, almost inaudibly, gasped at the welcomed contact.

"Oh, I think I'm reading the signs just fine," Merida said, amusement in her voice as she dared to move lower.

"_Merida,"_ Elsa warned. She pulled away and turned her chair to face her. "Do I have to be more frank with you?"

"More?" Merida scoffed. "When have you been frank at all?"

"I thought my talk the other day was pretty clear," she said seriously, alluding to a short conversation the two had shared earlier in the week. The thought of Elinor had nagged Elsa day and night in a very unpleasant way. "I have a certain role I have to fulfill here. Your teacher, remember?"

"But if you weren't my teacher. Let's just think about that."

"But I am," Elsa insisted. "Believe me, I have thought about that. I never even wanted to be a teacher in the first place!"

"What did you want to be?" Merida asked, genuinely curious. Elsa hesitated. She hadn't meant to admit that she thought about Merida being something other than her student or that she hadn't planned on being a teacher. But she'd already said it, so what was the harm in telling her more of the truth?

"Honestly, I wanted to be an architect. I still do." She glanced at the stack of work on her desk and tapped her pen against the wood. "When I get frustrated after grading all these papers, sometimes I sketch out new buildings."

Merida scooted a bit closer, so that their knees barely touched.

"What kinds of buildings?"

"All kinds of things, actually. Mostly houses. Fronts and floor plans. That kind of thing."

"Then why aren't you an architect? If you don't even like teaching, what's the point?"

That was more complicated. Elsa had felt directionless for a long time. Her father had always been steering her in a certain direction, but once he passed away, she didn't know what to do. So the easiest thing seemed to be taking the fast track to teaching. She figured that would give her a steady job and some experience, a foot in the door, to becoming something bigger. Her mother had been a teacher, after all, and so many people had adored her. And they always said Elsa was the spitting image of her mum. Maybe she could pick up where she left off.

"My father started it all, I suppose. I'll go on to get my doctorate eventually. I'm hoping to be a superintendent one day," Elsa explained, though it left a sort of hollow feeling inside her after she'd said it. In reality, it was all a horrible plan. But with no one to guide her, she felt quite lost.

"Well, you should just do what you want to do," Merida replied. She moved her hand onto Elsa's knee and looked at her sincerely. "Do it for yourself, not anyone else. You can do whatever you want."

Elsa looked into Merida's bright blue eyes. She placed her palm on top of Merida's hand.

"Unfortunately, that just isn't true at the moment." She carefully removed Merida's fingers from her knee and tucked her legs under the desk again to avoid any more touching. Personal space seemed to be a concept that was rapidly fading between the two of them. "I think we've covered enough today."

"What?" Merida glanced at the clock. "It's not time to go."

"You seem to be distracted anyhow."

"I'm always distracted," Merida admitted. She allowed herself a brief glance at Elsa's figure. "For exactly the reason you think."

Elsa swallowed a breath of air and shook her head as if to prevent any thoughts from entering.

"I would have thought you'd be happy to get to go home early."

"Anyone else would think that. But you and I know better."

Merida leaned her elbow against the desk and rested her chin in her hand, a sign she was definitely not ready to move.

"Fine," Elsa gave in after a moment. "I won't see you next week with school closing early. So we should get a little more done."

The school was having a short spring break, though it was more like a long weekend than a break. Thursdays that let out early were practically pointless. No one complained about having time off, however, especially not Merida.

"Are you doing anything special?" she asked the teacher, who rolled her eyes at the off topic discussion but answered anyhow.

"Actually, my sister is coming up from university on Friday. I'm looking forward to seeing her."

Merida started a new problem on the page of homework, but quickly her mind wandered. Instead of focusing on what she was doing, she began to come up with a devious plan.

"Nothing else?"

"Well, not really."

"Excellent!" Merida grinned widely. "You can drive me home on Thursday. But you have to pack extra clothes."

"Wait, what?" Elsa asked, terribly confused and slightly scared at what had gotten into Merida's head.

"Clothes you can get dirty. You know, mud and the like. Long sleeves, too. There's lots of branches and bugs. You aren't afraid of hiking, are you?"

"Oh. Hiking. No, I'm fine with that." Elsa mulled the information over. "But you want me to come to your house?"

"Me da' has a huge property. You wouldn't even be going into the house. Just the woods we own."

Elsa wrung her fingers, not looking at Merida for a moment.

"Merida, when are you going to realize that this isn't… You can't just invite me places. I'm your teacher."

"So? You won't be teaching me anything. We're going hiking. Just don't talk about math."

"Merida, you don't understand. You're not mature enough to-,"

The younger woman interrupted quickly.

"Not mature enough? I am an adult," she said sharply. "You're trying to tell me that I don't get it. Well, I do. You're worried to take this farther because it's sort of- oh what's the word for it?"

"Inappropriate?"

"There's nothing inappropriate about going on a hike!" Merida insisted, very obviously frustrated. "I take out clients with me da' all the time. I am old enough to think for myself, and I am old enough to know what I want. If you're worried about your reputation or something, you're over thinking things."

"I'm worried about more than my own reputation. What about you? All you know are these school walls. You're young. I don't want to take something away from you."

"Oh believe me! There won't be any taking unless I decide it. You act like you're so much older. You're not. I just know what I want and I'm not afraid to go and get it."

Elsa felt conflicted. She was supposed to be the bigger person, wasn't she? If she gave in, would that be wrong? But on the other hand, Merida was right. What was so wrong about it? If they had met anywhere else, no one would think anything of their relationship. Not that they had a relationship. In fact, this wasn't even a date. This was a ride home from school and a tour of her father's business. She clutched her hand against her heart and nodded.

"I'll give you a ride home next Thursday." She looked at her seriously. "After our usual tutoring, of course."

Merida grinned, ear to ear. Elsa loved seeing that smile, and it warmed her heart to know she caused it.

"Perfect." She jumped up and collected her things. "And remember the change of clothes. Wouldn't want that cute skirt getting ruined." She winked and strode confidently to the exit, feeling victorious.

Elsa yanked her skirt downward self-consciously and felt a little defeated. She looked away, waiting for the sound of the door shutting, and then scrubbed her face with her hand. This internal struggle was getting old already. And it was only going to get worse.


End file.
